[Jackie07]

Found these abstracts while trying to locate the source of those numbers (percentages) cited by Becky:

Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2011 Jun 14. [Epub ahead of print]
Genomic analysis identifies unique signatures predictive of brain, lung, and liver relapse.
Harrell JC, Prat A, Parker JS, Fan C, He X, Carey L, Anders C, Ewend M, Perou CM.
Source
Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, 450 West Drive, CB7295, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
Abstract
The ability to predict metastatic potential could be of great clinical importance, however, it is uncertain if predicting metastasis to specific vital organs is feasible. As a first step in evaluating metastatic predictions, we analyzed multiple primary tumors and metastasis pairs and determined that >90% of 298 gene expression signatures were found to be similarly expressed between matched pairs of tumors and metastases; therefore, primary tumors may be a good predictor of metastatic propensity. Next, using a dataset of >1,000 human breast tumor gene expression microarrays we determined that HER2-enriched subtype tumors aggressively spread to the liver, while basal-like and claudin-low subtypes colonize the brain and lung. Correspondingly, brain and lung metastasis signatures, along with embryonic stem cell, tumor initiating cell, and hypoxia signatures, were also strongly expressed in the basal-like and claudin-low tumors. Interestingly, low "Differentiation Scores," or high expression of the aforementioned signatures, further predicted for brain and lung metastases. In total, these data identify that depending upon the organ of relapse, a combination of gene expression signatures most accurately predicts metastatic behavior.

Am J Pathol. 2011 Jun 24. [Epub ahead of print]
Expression of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Proteins Is a Candidate Marker of Brain Metastasis in both ErbB-2(+) and ErbB-2(-) Primary Breast Tumors.
Sanz-Pamplona R, Aragüés R, Driouch K, MartÃ*n B, Oliva B, Gil M, Boluda S, Fernández PL, MartÃ*nez A, Moreno V, Acebes JJ, Lidereau R, Reyal F, Van de Vijver MJ, Sierra A.
Source
Biological Clues of the Invasive and Metastatic Phenotype Group, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Hospital Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
Abstract
The increasing incidence of breast cancer brain metastasis in patients with otherwise well-controlled systemic cancer is a key challenge in cancer research. It is necessary to understand the properties of brain-tropic tumor cells to identify patients at risk for brain metastasis. Here we attempt to identify functional phenotypes that might enhance brain metastasis. To obtain an accurate classification of brain metastasis proteins, we mapped organ-specific brain metastasis gene expression signatures onto an experimental protein-protein interaction network based on brain metastatic cells. Thirty-seven proteins were differentially expressed between brain metastases and non-brain metastases. Analysis of metastatic tissues, the use of bioinformatic approaches, and the characterization of protein expression in tumors with or without metastasis identified candidate markers. A multivariate analysis based on stepwise logistic regression revealed GRP94, FN14, and inhibin as the best combination to discriminate between brain and non-brain metastases (ROC AUC = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.73 to 0.96 for the combination of the three proteins). These markers substantially improve the discrimination of brain metastasis compared with ErbB-2 alone (AUC = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.60 to 0.93). Furthermore, GRP94 was a better negative marker (LR = 0.16) than ErbB-2 (LR = 0.42). We conclude that, in breast carcinomas, certain proteins associated with the endoplasmic reticulum stress phenotype are candidate markers of brain metastasis.

Bull Cancer. 2011 Apr 1;98(4):433-444.
Brain metastasis from breast cancer: Who?, when? and special considerations about the role of technology in neurosurgery.
Dutertre G, Pouit B.
Abstract
Questions about both the place and the role of surgery on brain metastasis from breast cancer are arising more and more frequently in practice due to the increase of brain metastasis in patients suffering from a form of cancer recognized as one of the most recurrent cancers in adults but also one of the most sensitive to general treatments of the systemic disease. With improvements in anaesthesia, in surgical instruments, and in global care, neurosurgery has taken advantage of new techniques such as pre- and even per-operative imagery and also neuronavigation. These techniques enable radical and effective surgical intervention with a high level of safety for the patient, making neurosurgery perfectly competitive with other therapeutic modalities, particularly on functional grounds. As for symptomatic treatments or other anti-metastasis treatments, most situations allow a reflection on the global therapeutic strategy which can be adapted to individual cases depending on the patient's general prognosis. In developing this global therapeutic strategy, surgical treatment is still as relevant as ever.